


Two Doctors and the Library

by KittyontheEdge04



Series: The Coexistenceverse Series One [16]
Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who (1963), Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Character Death, F/M, Gen, Minor Character Death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-16
Updated: 2019-10-18
Packaged: 2020-12-17 14:31:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 20
Words: 18,945
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21055964
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KittyontheEdge04/pseuds/KittyontheEdge04
Summary: It's a chance encounter when two Doctors meet along with their respective companions at a library from the future, but they're not alone as they also got allies and enemies at that very library.





	1. Entering the Library

**Author's Note:**

> Hello. Welcome to a brand new Doctor Who multi Doctor team up. This time it is featuring the Tenth Doctor and companions Donna Noble and Rose Tyler. If you have been following my other stories, Rose was not separated from the Doctor and that still applies as well as the Fifth Doctor and companions Nyssa and Adric. In case you are wondering, here are two things: first, this is nearly immediately after my previous Fifth Doctor story “What Might've Been”, so Adric doesn't die in the pocket universe at least and Second, for the purpose of this story the Doctor accidentally leaves Tegan at her time in London, but she does make a cameo appearance before the story ends. I got inspired to do this where Peter Davison, who plays the Fifth Doctor is the father in law to David Tennant, who plays the Tenth Doctor. Even though I know there was a multi Doctor event with them two together, I thought I'd write another with one of my favorite two parter stories of Nu Who. 
> 
> Also, when the two Doctors meet, they will be addressed as Five and Ten respectively like I did with “Darkairai” when I had David Tennant's Tenth Doctor and Tom Baker's Fourth Doctor team up. 
> 
> With all that out of the way, here we go!

Disclaimer: _Doctor Who _and all related characters and properties belong to the BBC.

**Two Doctors and the Library**

Inside the TARDIS, the Doctor in his Fifth incarnation with blonde hair and blue eyes, wearing a celery on his beige calf length long coat, tan and red striped light weight pants held in place with suspenders and white converse sneakers. With him were two of his companions: a young man with dark blackish brown hair, brown eyes, wearing a yellow top with light green sleeves an orange pocket on his shirt that obtained his light blue star, tan pants and light green boots. The other was a beautiful young woman with curly brown hair and brown eyes with intelligence in them, wearing a long sleeved purple top and purple bottom and 3 inch heels that she got from Earth a few days prior. They were one companion short however.

“Did we forget somebody?” the young man asked.

“Who did I forget, Adric?” the Doctor asked, “there is you, Nyssa and......”

Quickly, he looked around to see that they were one companion short, stating that Adric's statement was indeed true.

“Tegan!” the Doctor exclaimed, “We forgot Tegan!”

“We must have left her when we were back at 1982, back at her time.” Nyssa explained, “also when we were visiting London at the time taking a holiday after our deal with the Cybermen.”

“You are right, of course.” the Doctor explained, “First thing's first however, we got this strange message to come to this library. I have no clue why, but once we figure it out, we will go and get Tegan.”

Nyssa and Adric both looked at each other before looking at the Doctor.

“We'll agree to that.” Adric replied.

“Now,” the Doctor replied, “We should go inside this library to figure out what is going on and why it brought us here.”

The three left the TARDIS to explore this mysterious library. This library that they saw was unnerving. There was no people here, and they wondered where the people went to.

“We're in the fifty – first century.” the Doctor told his companions, “by now, we have holovids, direct to brain downloads, fiction mist, but you need the smell, the smell of books. Deep breath.”

Nyssa and Adric continued to follow the Doctor further into the library.

“This is the library.” the Doctor told his companions, “it's so big it doesn't need a name, just a great big the.”

“It is like a city!” Nyssa exclaimed.

“It is a world.” Adric added, “literally, a world.”

“My thoughts exactly.” the Doctor replied, “the whole core of the planet is the index computer, biggest hard drive ever, and up here, every book ever written. Whole continents of Jefferey Archer, Bridget Jones, Monty Python's Big Red Book. Brand new editions, especially printed. We're near the equator, so......this must be biographies!”

“Biographies?” Adric stated.

“We need a good death every now and then,” the Doctor told him, “Without death, there would only be comedies. Dying gives us size.”

“The Balance doesn't think so.” Adric retorted.

“Now that's not fair.” the Doctor replied, “you got lucky that time. I think the Balance only intervenes when necessary and they found saving you necessary.”

The Doctor spotted Nyssa attempting to read ahead a book that was laying nearby and snatched it from her, “Hey! Spoilers!”

“What?” Nyssa quipped.

“These books are from your future.” the Doctor stated, “of course, with the snap that Thanos did tore a whole in our universe, there is no telling what universe this is and what future you would have there.”

“Isn't traveling with you one big spoiler?” Adric asked. Nyssa nodded in agreement.

“We.....I try to keep you guys away from major plot developments.” the Doctor answered, “which to be honest, I seem to be bad at cause you know what this is, the biggest library in the universe. So where is everyone?”

“That is what I was wondering.” Nyssa stated.

“It's silent.” said the Doctor.

“The library?” Adric asked.

“The whole planet.” the Doctor answered as he used his sonic screwdriver to see one of the computers online.

“You were right, Doctor.” Nyssa stated, “we are not the only ones here. Someone must have came here and turned this computer on.”

“Possibly so.”

“Doctor, why are we here?” Adric asked, “Really, why?”

“You know, just passing.” the Doctor answered, “you know why! We got a message from someone, albeit, I do not know who, to come here. We will need to figure out who and why?!”

“Why don't we scan for life forms?” Nyssa suggested.

“Good idea!” the Doctor replied before pressing a few buttons, “I try that, and I got nothing.”

“How about scan for any kind of life?”

“I will try that.”

The Doctor was startled to see it was already done for him.

“A million, million.” the Doctor stated, “it gives up after that.”

“That is odd.” Adric replied.

“A million million.” Nyssa added, “but there's nothing here. There is no one.”

“And not a sound.” the Doctor stated, “a million million life forms and silence in the library. Whoever came here before us must have figured it out before we did.”

“Isn't a library supposed to be silent?” Adric asked.

“True,” the Doctor answered, “but not in this kind of matter.”

“There is no one here.” Nyssa stated, “there is books however. It is not just the books, is it?”

“It can't be the books, can it?” Adric added, “I mean books can't be alive.”

The three heard a voice chime welcoming them to the library. They walked to see a node, a modern-esque statue with a human face greeted them, “I am Courtesy Node 7/10 Aqua. Please enjoy the library and respect the personal access codes of all your fellow readers, regardless of species or hygiene taboo.”

“That face looks real!” Nyssa exclaimed.

“Yeah,” the Doctor replied, “but do not worry about it.”

“A statue with a real face though.” Adric added, “It's a hologram or something, isn't it?”

“No,” the Doctor answered, “but really it's fine.”

“Additional,” the node continued, “there follows a brief message from the head librarian for your urgent attention. It has been edited for tone and content by a Felman Lux Automated Decency Filter. Message follows: Run. For God's sake. Run. Nowhere is safe. The library has sealed itself. We can't....oh, they're here. Arg. Slarg. Snick. Message ends. Please switch off your mobile comm units for the comfort of other readers.”

“I have a feeling that is why we are here.” the Doctor stated.

“Doctor!” Nyssa exclaimed, pointing at something.

“I see it too.” Adric added. The Doctor turned to their glances to see another TARDIS standing not too far from their TARDIS.

“It is another police box!” Adric exclaimed, “but how?!”

“It must mean there is another Doctor in this library.” the Doctor stated, “but I do not see how that is possible. If we happen to run into him, we will cross that bridge when we come to it, but for now, we need to keep moving. I know now that we are not alone here. We need to keep moving.”


	2. Meeting Another Doctor

**Chapter Two. Meeting another Doctor**

The Doctor, Adric and Nyssa walked to a hallway full of books.

“So we're not just in the neighborhood.” Adric stated.

“I had the same feeling.” Nyssa added.

“Yeah,” the Doctor replied, “I kinda sorta lied a bit. I have no idea why the TARDIS brought us here if there is already another Doctor involved.”

“Maybe this might require more than one Doctor.” Adric shrugged his shoulders.

“But who would have......” Nyssa began to ask.

“Trust me,” the Doctor answered, “I have no idea why whoever brought us here needed more than one Doctor, but we're here.”

“Doctor!” Nyssa exclaimed. The three looked to see the hallways' lights shut off aisle by aisle.

“Run!” the Doctor shouted. The three ran until they came across a nearby door.

“We can hide there.” the Doctor told his companions as they ran to the doorway. He tried to open the door, but it appeared to be locked, “It's locked, but it is more or less jammed.”

“Maybe try.....” Nyssa began before she had the two guys to stand clear and she kicked the door open. Then the three waltzed into the room to find three figures already occupying the room. The first one was a tall man with feather light brown hair, brown eyes, wearing a dark blue suit and converse sneakers. The second was a young woman with shoulder length blonde hair, brown eyes wearing a purple shirt, purple jacket, blue jeans and sneakers, and the third person was a woman with her red hair held back in a ponytail, green eyes wearing a blue top, grayish vest, purple jacket, jeans and tennis shoes. The three figures were startled by the three's sudden arrival.

“Rose,” the tall man exclaimed, “close the door before the shadows engulf us all!”

The blonde woman, Rose Tyler lifted her hands as her eyes glowed gold, then the door shut behind the Doctor, Adric and Nyssa.

“How do you do that?” Adric asked.

“What I would like to know is who are you and how did you......” the tall man turned around and looked over at the Doctor, Nyssa and Adric.

“Oh....oh my.” the tall man looked as if he saw a ghost, “That is not possible.”

“What?” Rose asked.

“He.....he's me. A past version of me. He is the Doctor from the past.”

“What do you mean the Doctor from the past?” the red head scoffed in annoyance, “When was you going to tell me this?!”

“This is my Fifth Incarnation.” the Tenth Doctor explained, “I explained all my past lives to my lovely wife Rose Tyler......”

“Hello there.” Rose smiled and waved at the Fifth Doctor.

“And that includes you,” Ten added, “you see, Rose? A mop of blonde hair and a fondness for cricket.”

“I see that.” Rose replied.

“That I do have a fondness for cricket.” Five replied.

“Wait a minute.” Ten looked over at Adric and Nyssa, “Nyssa, it has been so long.”

He gave Nyssa a hug which confused her.

“I believe this is the first time this Nyssa met you.” Rose told her husband, “And this is not the Nyssa that found the cure for Lazar's on Terminus and is now with the Voltron Force.”

“Oi!” Ten exclaimed, “What did I tell you about spoilers?!”

“What about me?” Adric asked, “What happens to me?”

Ten took a good look at Adric. He heard the words of his brother Varsh's ghost echo in his mind after the fateful encounter with the Cybermen, _Why didn't you save him? He trusted you and you let him down! _

“Doctor, love?” Rose asked with concern on her face, “Are you okay?”

Quickly, Ten gave Adric an even more emotional hug. The Alzarian figured something must have happened to give this future Doctor emotion and not really knowing what else to say he said, “I guess it is better left unsaid.”

“I think things probably turned out differently in this Doctor's timeline.” Five stated.

“What are you talking about?” Ten asked, “And where's Tegan?”

Five managed to fill in to Ten on what happened to them on their end, including where Tegan was.

“I guess that explains everything.” Ten replied after his predecessor explained everything, “when Thanos did the snap over five years ago, even our timelines are affected, creating more alternate universes.”

“Are you getting any of this?” the red head woman asked Adric.

“Not really.” Adric answered, “by the way, what is your name?”

“Yeah.” Nyssa added, “we never really introduced ourselves, but I guess the future Doctor knows us already.”

“As you know I am the Doctor in my Tenth incarnation.” Ten introduced his group, “and the beautiful blonde woman is my wonderful wife Rose Tyler, and with us is our current companion Donna Noble.”

“Good to meet you.” Five quickly introduced his group, “I guess you already know my group. Adric and Nyssa of Traken and as you can see, Tegan Jovanka could not be with us, but after we are done here, we are getting her back to the TARDIS.”

“Let me guess,” Ten took a guess, “Tegan is at her time in London.”

“Precisely.”

“Now, what exactly are you three doing here?”

“That is what we are trying to figure out. Our TARDIS just brought us here. You?”

“We got a message wanting us to come here. Seems like a cry for help.”

“Cry for help with a kiss?” Donna chided, “I still think this is odd.”

“Yeah,” Adric replied, “even strange with the aisles of the halls going out on their own.”

“It did that to us too.” Donna revealed, “Like....”

“It was trying to set up a trap.” Rose added.

“What is going on here?” Adric asked.

“That is what we are trying to figure out.” Ten answered, “before we came to this room a node told us to count the shadows.”

“The same node that we saw?” Nyssa asked, “when we saw your TARDIS close to ours.”

“If you are talking about where we entered,” Five answered, “then possibly so.”

“What does it mean by count the shadows?” Adric asked.

“I guess we are about to find out.” Ten answered.


	3. Enter: River Song

**Chapter Three. Enter: River Song**

“Doctor!” Nyssa exclaimed pointing at something. Everyone looked to see a round camera display words: _The library has been breached. Others are coming. _

“Others?” Donna looked at the message, “What's it mean others?”

Donna walked over to a nearby node, “Excuse me, what does it mean others?”

“That's barely more than a speak to a weight machine,” Ten stated, “It can't help you.”

The node turned around with another human face.

“So why's it got a face?” Nyssa asked.

The node spoke, “This flesh aspect was donated by Mark Chambers on the occasion of his death.”

“It's a real face!” Adric exclaimed.

“It has been actualized individually for you,” the node continued, “from the many facial aspects saved to our extensive flesh banks. Please enjoy.”

“It chose me a dead face it thought I'd like?” Donna stated, “That statue's got a real dead person's face on it!”

“It's the fifty first century,” Five explained, “it is basically like donating a park bench.”

“It's donating a face!” Donna exclaimed.

“She seems to be uptight.” Nyssa stated quietly as Ten grabbed Donna, keeping her from stepping into the shadows.

“A shadow,” Adric stated, “One shadow.”

“But what's casting it?” Five asked.

“Oh! I'm thick!” Ten exclaimed, “Look at me! I'm old and thick!”

“Head's too full of stuff!” Five added, “We clearly need bigger heads!”

“What is with you two?” Rose stated in confusion as the group gathered to see corridors in the room beginning to turn dark.

“The power must be going.” Nyssa stated.

“This place runs on fission cells.” Ten explained, “They'll out burn the sun.”

“Then why is it dark?” Adric asked.

“It is not dark.” Five answered.

“The shadow is gone.” Rose stated.

“The shadow is not gone.” Ten replied, “it has moved. We need to get back to the TARDIS.”

“Reminder.” the node spoke again, “the library has been breached. Others are coming. Reminder. The library has been breached. Others are coming. Reminder. The library has been breached. Others are coming.”

“What others?” Rose asked.

“What others are coming?!” Adric added.

The six were startled when the door busted open revealing someone in a space suit.

“Reminder. The library has been breached. Others are coming.”

About four to five others in space suits followed behind the first person, who revealed their face to be a woman's face as she smiled at the two Doctors, “Hello, sweeties.”

“Get out.” Five sternly told the woman and her crew.

“Who is this woman?” Rose asked in weary, “How does she know you?”

“Do not know,” Ten answered, “Do not care. All I know is, they are leaving. All of you, turn around, get back in your rocket and fly away!”

“You heard what I said!” Five added, “Get to it! Tell your grandchildren you came to the library and lived. They won't believe you.”

“Pop your helmets everyone.” the woman told her crew, “we got breathers.”

“How do you know they're not androids?” another woman asked.

“Cause I dated androids.” the first woman took off her mask revealing her curly sandy blonde hair that was held in a ponytail, “they're rubbish.”

“Who is this?” the older looking man with jet black hair asked, “You said we'd be the only expedition. I paid for exclusives.”

“That is very nice.” Adric chided as the rest of crew took off their helmets.

“I lied.” the first woman admitted, “I'm always lying. Bound to be others.”

“Miss Evangelista,” the older man told a pretty young woman with raven hair held in a ponytail, “I want to see the contracts.”

“You came through the north door?” the first woman told the two Doctors, “How was that? Much damage?”

“Please just leave.” Ten insisted.

“We are asking you seriously and properly.” Five added.

“Hang on,” Rose asked, “Did you say expedition?”

“My expedition.” the older man answered, “I funded it.”

“Oh, you are not are you?” Five asked.

“Tell me you're not archaeologists.” Ten groaned.

“Got a problem with archaeologists?” the first woman asked.

“We're time travelers.” Ten answered, “me and my past self, and we point and laugh at archaeologists.”

Five just stood there and said nothing. Nyssa and Adric were slightly dumbfounded as Donna and Rose just stood there.

“Ah,” the first woman replied before introducing herself, “Professor River Song. Archaeologist.”

“River Song.” Five replied, “Lovely name.”

“As you're leaving,” Ten added helping his past self get the archaeologists out of the library, “and you're leaving now, you need to set up a quarantine beacon, code wall the planet.”

“The whole planet!” Five continued, “Nobody comes here ever again!”

“He's right not one living thing! Not here, not ever!”

Five ran to stop a black woman in the same space suit from going any further, “Stop where you are! What is your name?”

“Anita.”

“Anita, stay out of the shadows.”

“He is right,” Ten added, “not a foot, not a finger in the shadows till you are safely back in your ship.”

“That goes for all of you. Stay in the light!”

“Find a nice bright spot and just stand. If you understand us, look very, very scared.”

There was little to no response from that.

“No, a bit more scared than that.” Five stated.

There was a bit more scared reaction from the crew, but not quite.

“Okay, that'll do for now,” Ten replied before turning to a bulky young man, “you, who are you?”

“Dave.”

“Okay, Dave.....”

“Oh, well, Other Dave......” the black man told Ten, “because that's Proper Dave, the pilot. He was the first Dave, so when......”

“Okay, Other Dave.” Ten asked as he and Five shown him the area, “the way you came, does it look the same as before?”

“Yeah.” Other Dave answered before looking at the hall, “Oh! It's a bit darker.”

“How much darker?” Five asked.

“Like,” Other Dave answered, “I could see where we came through just a moment ago. I can't now.”

“Seal up this door.” Ten replied as he and Five went back into the room, “We'll find another way out.”

“Looks like these shadows are as bad as you stated.” Five told his future self.


	4. Clash and Revelation

"We're not looking for a way out." the older man stated, "Miss Evangelista."

Miss Evangelista walked over to the six as they regrouped and she explained herself, "I am Mr. Lux's personal everything. You need to sign these contracts agreeing that your individual experience inside the library are the intellectual property of the Felman Lux Corporation."

Ten, Rose and Donna each got their contracts and ripped them in half.

"I think they got the right idea." Five said.

Five, Adric and Nyssa did the same thing seconds later.

"My family built this library." Lux told the six, "I have rights."

"You have a mouth that won't stop." River chided before looking at the two Doctors, "You think there's danger here?"

Nyssa crossed her arms, as she was nowhere near impressed with this River character.

"Something came to this library and killed everything in it." Ten revealed.

"So that's what happened to all the people!" Adric exclaimed. Nyssa looked at him in surprise.

"Killed a whole world." Five spoke with realization, "Danger?"

"Could be." Ten chided.

"This is serious!" Five chastised.

"I know. I know." Ten replied, "We just do not know what the danger is!"

"That was 100 years ago." River stated, "the library has been silent for 100 years. Whatever came here is long dead."

"Bet your life?" Ten sharply asked.

"Always." River assured the two Doctors.

"That River Song lady seems to be really annoying." Nyssa told Adric.

"Possibly," Adric replied, "but if she does happen to know what is going on here, we should probably play along at least."

"What are you doing?" Lux demanded.

"He said seal the door."

Ten managed to take the torch from Lux that he was holding as Other Dave was sealing the door as told by the two Doctors.

Ten and Five used a Torch as Five took one from Anita to look at the shadows in the room. Rose, Donna, Adric and Nyssa were right behind their two Doctors.

"Almost every species in the universe has an irrational fear of the dark." Five stated.

"But they're wrong," Ten added, "cause it is not irrational. It's Vashta Nerada."

"You took the words out of my mouth exactly." Five replied, "Like you knew how to finish my sentences."

"I seem to have a knack for that." Ten smirked.

"What's the Vashta Nerada?" Adric asked.

"It is what in the dark." Five answered, "It's what always in the dark."

The six walked over to the archaeologists as Ten exclaimed, "Lights! That's what we need! Lights! You got lights?"

"What for?" River asked.

"Form a circle," Five told everyone, "safe area, big as you can. Lights pointing out."

"Why?" Other Dave asked.

"Do as he says." River answered.

"You're not listening to this man?" Mr. Lux snapped.

"Apparently I am." River replied before giving everyone in her crew instructions, "Anita, unpack the lights. Other Dave, make sure the door's secure then help Anita. Mr. Lux, put your helmet back on and block the visor. Proper Dave, find an active terminal, access library database. See what you can find out about what happened 100 years ago. Pretty boys, and blonde girl, you're with me. Step into my office."

Ten and Five were looking at an area in the room.

"Professor Song," Lux asked, "why am I the only one wearing my helmet?"

"I don't fancy you." River answered with a smirk on her face.

"For once I agree with her." Nyssa whispered to Adric, "he acts like he knows it all."

"Well," Adric replied, "He did built this place. His family anyway."

"Probably I can help you." Ten walked over to Proper Dave.

"Pretty boys! With me and Rose, I said!" River exclaimed.

"Doctor..." Rose began.

"And Doctor." Donna added.

"She means you two." Adric told them.

"You're a pretty boy too," River told Adric, "Adric, isn't it?"

"Uh, yes." Adric slowly nodded, doing his best to brush off her advances. Nyssa growled in annoyance at River as Five and Ten met with Rose and River.

"Don't let your shadows cross!" Ten told the crew.

"He...you get the idea!" Five added, "seriously, don't even let them touch! Any of them could be infected."

"How can a shadow be infected?" Other Dave asked.

"Excuse me, can I help?" Miss Evangelista asked her crewmates.

"No," Anita answered, "we're fine."

"I could just," Miss Evangelista insisted, "you know hold things."

"No really," stated Other Dave, "we're okay."

Adric walked over to Anita and Other Dave as Nyssa, Rose and Donna followed, "Couldn't she help?"

"Trust me," Other Dave answered the boy, "I just spent four days on a ship with that woman. She's a..."

"Couldn't tell the difference between the escape pod and the bathroom." Anita added, "We had to go back for her. Twice."

Ten and Five looked over at River and seconds later, so did Rose.

"I knew you would come." River stated, "I just never expected to have two Doctors here at the same time. Just how did you two come here anyways?"

"I got a message saying to come here soon as possible." Ten answered.

"Ah!" River answered, "So you got my call? As expected. Now blonde boy, how did you get to this library?"

"My TARDIS brought me and my companions to this library." Five answered, "and I have a feeling the Balance has something to do with this now that I know what is going on to an extent."

"Did you say the Balance?" River asked.

"Yes." Five nodded, "Yes, I did."

"That was expected too." River looked down for a second before looking up, "you told me...your past self told me that at least one future version of himself would come here to this library. He...you said it was my destiny."

"Why did you bring me here if you were only talking to the two Doctors?" Rose asked.

"Cause some of what the past Doctor said has something to do with you too." River answered, "He mentions something about Bad Wolf Immortal."

"That is what I am." Rose stated, "when I was struck by a Dalek at the Game station before the Doctor regenerated to this current look, I actually died, but then I came back to life, and was eventually rescued by the Doctor and I found out later after absorbing the time vortex it activated my status as Bad Wolf Immortal."

"That was revealed to us after we defeated Darkairai for the first time." Ten added, "Me along with another past version of myself that was with Leela. I will never stop running into myself."

"No," River answered, "and according to this past Doctor I encountered, he said you would eventually join forces with all your past and future incarnations."

"Future?" Ten was startled by the statement.

"You mean there's more?" Five added.

"I don't know much about it." River replied, "I just know according to what...you told me."

"We already have and it was Thanos." Ten stated, "and Jack, the Avengers, the X Men, the Voltron Force and the Guardians of the Galaxy, they all helped us."

"But the other Doctors were not present." Rose reminded her husband.

"Right," Ten stated, "I fought alongside them on two huge battles. One against Mysterio and the other against the Green Goblin and his group of followers that have since disbanded but I believe the Green Goblin is still around."

"There is one more battle all the Doctors will have to face." River said, "one that will have you, your past selves and future selves face against a threat so big, it is the biggest threat in all existence. All universes will be at risk."

"That is something to keep aware of." Ten told his wife and his predecessor.

"You are right you know." Five nodded, "I just wonder what that threat is."


	5. Encountering the Vashta Nerada

Suddenly, everyone heard the alarm in the room buzz.

"Sorry. That was me." Proper Dave apologized as he set an alarm off on the computer that was saying "Access Denied" whenever he tried to gain access, "Trying to get through into the security protocols, I have seem to set something off. What is that? Is that an alarm?"

"Doctor..." Adric began.

"Doctor, that sounded like a..." Rose added.

"Yeah, it is." Ten stated, "a phone."

"I'm trying to call up the data core but it's not responding. Just that noise." Proper Dave announced.

"But it's a phone." Donna stated.

"Let me try something." Ten typed some stuff on the computer. The same result occurred, "Access Denied".

"Okay," Ten replied, "it don't like that."

"Let's try something else." Five stated before finally a picture of a simple living room appeared with a little girl sitting in it, "Okay, here it comes. Hello."

"Hello." the little girl greeted the two Doctors, "Are you in my television?"

"Well, no." Ten answered, "I'm...we're sort of in space." Ten stated.

"We were trying to call up the data core of a Triple Grid Security Processor." Five added.

"Would you like to speak to my Dad?" the little girl asked.

"Your dad or your mum," Five answered, "that would be lovely."

"I know you." the little girl said, "the guy with the funny hair. You were in my library with a blonde girl and a red head."

"Your library?" Ten chided.

"The library's never been on television before." the little girl asked, "What have you done?"

"Ah, well, um, I just..." Ten tried explaining before the screen cut off, "I just rerouted the the interface."

The screen went black before the library logo shown ACCESS DENIED again.

"What happened, Doctor?" Adric asked.

"Who was that?" Nyssa added.

Neither Doctor answered as they both tried their shots on the computer before Ten ran across the terminal and began working there.

"Keep working on those lights!" Five ordered before following his future self, "we need those lights!"

"You heard them people," River replied, "let there be light!"

Five tried getting information from the computer but Ten was more concerned about the blue book that River had with her and he tried to look into it, only to be stopped by River herself, "Sorry, you're not allowed to see inside the book. Against the rules."

"What rules?" Ten asked.

"Your rules. Don't ask, the Doctor I saw before I came here said of many rules and that was one of them."

"What's that?" Ten was startled with books being thrown across the room.

"I didn't do that." Five stated before asking Proper Dave, "Did you do that?"

"Not me." Proper Dave answered.

The two Doctors looked to see CAL on the screen of the computer.

"What's CAL?" Ten asked.

Eventually, the books stopped throwing and Donna looked to see Miss Evangelista appearing to be scared or freaked out. She walked over to the young woman.

"Are you alright?" Donna asked.

"What's that?" Miss Evangelista asked in fear, "What's happening?"

"I don't know." Lux answered.

"Oh, thanks you know for offering to help with the lights." Donna told the young lady.

"They don't want me." Miss Evangelista said, "They think I'm stupid because I'm pretty."

"Course they don't." Donna replied, "Nobody thinks that."

"No, they're right though." the young lady continued, "I'm a moron really. My Dad said I had an IQ of a plankton and I was pleased."

Donna chuckled, "See? That's funny."

"You think you are useless?" Adric asked as he and Nyssa walked over to them, overhearing the talk they were having, "I used to think the same way with my...crew despite my mathematical skills. I always felt like the odd one out since I was...am the only boy in my group but after my near death experience, the Doctor proven me during what he called a holiday, that in certain situations when it is necessary, I can be useful. I am pretty sure with your sense of humor you can find yourself useful in that category."

"You seem to know a lot for a boy your age." Miss Evangelista glanced at Adric before continuing, "but no, I really was pleased."

Adric nodded slowly, understanding. Nyssa decided to remain quiet.

"Is that funny?" Miss Evangelista asked.

"No." Adric and Nyssa answered at the same time.

"No." Donna added.

More books started being thrown around randomly as Adric and Donna helped Miss Evangelista the best they could.

"What is causing that?" River asked.

"Is it the little girl?" Nyssa added.

"Who is the little girl?" Five asked.

"What's she gotta do with this place?" Ten added.

Ten and Five sat together at a table as the others were not too far from where they were sitting.

"How does the data core work?" Five asked, "What's the principle?"

"What is CAL?" Ten added.

"Ask Mr. Lux." River answered.

"CAL, what is it?" Five asked.

"Sorry," Lux answered stubbornly, "you didn't sign your personal experience contracts."

Nyssa walked over to the man, "Mr. Lux, right now you are in more danger than you've been in your whole life, and you're protecting a patent?"

The man didn't back down, "I am protecting my family's pride."

"Well, funny thing Mr. Lux," Ten snapped, "I don't wanna see everyone in this room dead because some idiot think his pride is more important."

"Then why don't you sign his contract?" River asked.

"If only Tegan was here." Nyssa told Adric.

"Yeah." Adric replied, "she would be chewing her off big time."

"I didn't either." River told everyone before glancing at the two Doctors, "I'm getting worse than you."

"Okay. Okay." Ten told the crew, "let's start at the beginning."

"What happened here?" Five asked, "on the actual day 100 years ago, what happened?"

"There was a message from the library," River explained, "Just one. "The lights are going out." Then the computer sealed the planet, and there was nothing for 100 years."

"It's taken three generations of my family just to decode the seals and get back in." Lux added.

"Uh, excuse me." Miss Evangelista chimed in.

"Not just now." Lux dismissed her.

"There was one other thing in the last message." River continued.

"That's confidential." Lux firmly told her.

"I trust this man." River said, "both of them. With my life, with everything."

"You only just met him!" Lux snapped.

"No. Not quite. Not in either form, it is difficult to explain." River replied.

"Um, this might be important actually." Miss Evangelista tried to chime in again.

"In a moment." Lux dismissed her again.

"This is a data extract that came with the last message." River shown the group.

"4,022 saved." Ten looked at the extract.

"No survivors." Five added.

"4,022." River explained, "that's the exact number of people who were in the library when the planet was sealed."

"But how can 4,022 people be saved if there were no survivors?" Adric asked.

"That's what we're here to find out." River answered.

"And so far," Lux added, "what we haven't found are any bodies."

Everyone was startled upon hearing a scream. They hurried to find where the scream was coming from. They looked to see a skeleton figure laying close by.

"Everybody, careful," Ten told the others, "stay in the light."

"You keep saying that," Proper Dave chided, "I don't see the point."

"Who screamed?" Five asked.

"Miss Evangelista." Lux answered.

"Where is she?" Adric asked.

"Miss Evangelista," River tried contacting the young lady as she was unaware of her current predicament, "please state your current..."

Everyone heard River's echoing voice close by and saw that the skeletal body was what was left of Miss Evangelista.

"Please state your current...position."

Nyssa clasped her hands in shock at the sight, especially when River announced, "It's her. That's Miss Evangelista."

"We heard her scream a few seconds ago." Anita stated, "What could do that to a person in a few seconds?"

"Took a lot less than a few seconds." Ten replied.

"What did?"

"Hello?"

"I'm sorry everyone." River informed the group, "This isn't going to be pleasant. She's ghosting."

"She's what?" Donna asked.

"Hello, excuse me? I'm sorry. Hello? Excuse me?"

"That's...that's her." Donna stammered.

"That's Miss Evangelista." Adric added.

"I don't wanna sound horrible," Proper Dave told the group, "but couldn't we just...you know..."

"This is her last moment," River replied, "No we can't. A little respect thank you."

"Sorry, where am I? Excuse me?"

"But that's Miss Evangelista." Nyssa was surprised by this.

"It's a data ghost." River informed her, "She'll be gone in a moment."

"Miss Evangelista," River assured the girl through her communicator as her voice echoed, "you're fine. Just relax. We'll be with you presently."

"What's a data ghost?" Donna asked.

"There's a neural relay in the communicator," Five answered, "lets you send thought mails."

Ten shown the group the green lights on the remains of her suit, "That's it there. Those green lights. Sometimes it can hold an impression of a living consciousness for a short time after death."

"Like an after image." Rose added.

"Her grandfather lasted a day." Anita said to the group, "Kept talking about his shoelaces."

"She's in there." Adric told the two Doctors.

"I can't see." the voice chimed, "I can't...where am I?"

"She's just brainwaves now. Patterns won't hold for long." Five informed the group.

"She's conscious." Donna stated, "She's thinking."

"I can't see. I can't...I don't know what I'm thinking."

"She's a footprint on a beach." Ten informed the companions.

"And the tide's coming in." Five added.

"Where's that woman? And the boy?" Miss Evangelista's voice asked, "The nice woman and the boy. Are they there?"

"What woman?" Lux asked, "and what boy?"

"Adric," Nyssa stated looking at Adric and then Donna, "I think she means you and...what was your name again?"

"Donna." Donna answered.

"Adric and Donna," Nyssa told the crew, "they were nice to Miss Evangelista when the rest of you were mean to her!"

"Are they there? The nice woman and the boy."

"Yes." River answered, "they are here. Hang on."

"Go ahead, she can hear you." River told Adric and Donna.

"Hello, are you there?"

Adric was hesitant to move as Donna was too terrified to move herself.

"Go on Adric," Nyssa urged her friend, "help her."

Reluctantly, Adric walked over to help Miss Evangelista.

"You too." Ten told Donna.

"She's dead." Donna replied.

"Yeah." Rose added, "Help her."

"Hello? Is that the nice woman and the boy?"

"Yeah." Adric replied, "We are here."

"Yes. It is us." Donna added, "Hello. Yeah, we are here. Are you okay?"

Another bar dropped leaving Miss Evangelista with only two bars left, "What I said before, about being stupid and an outcast, don't tell the others, they'll only laugh."

"Of course we won't." Donna replied, "we will not tell them."

"Don't tell the others. They'll only laugh."

"We won't tell them." Adric assured her this time, "we told you that we wouldn't."

"Don't tell the others, they'll only laugh."

"I'm not going to tell them." Donna replied, her voice breaking. Adric was alarmed as all the lights in her suit was blinking, the last two bars were blinking.

"Don't tell the others, they'll only laugh."

"She's looping now," River announced, "the pattern's degrading."

"I can't think...I don't know...I..."

The signal fluttered.

"Ice cream. Ice cream. Ice cream. Ice cream. Ice cream."

"Does anybody mind if I..." Anita started.

River turned off Miss Evangelista's communicator as the young lady was now long gone. Nyssa turned away in anguish. Adric was dumbfounded.

"That was horrible!" Nyssa cried.

"That was the most horrible thing I've ever seen." Donna added.

"Well, it's just a freak of technology." River stated.

"How can you say that?" Adric questioned the archaeologist, "Miss Evangelista was a human being! Not a freak of technology!"

"I was talking about the communicator, kiddo, not Miss Evangelista." River assured him.

"Whatever did this to her," River then stated, "Whatever killed her, I'd like a word with that."

"I'll introduce you." Ten replied. The remaining group returned to the area they were at previously.


	6. Situation Gone Bad

"We're gonna need a packed lunch." Five told the crew.

"Hang on." River replied before handing either Doctor a chicken leg which Ten took.

"What's in that book?" Ten asked.

"Spoilers." River answered.

"Who are you?" Five asked.

"Professor River Song. I am not a time traveler in case you are wondering."

"Then how do you know us?"

"Look, all I know is this man who also called himself the Doctor came to me just a few days before and told me everything that I told you so far."

"So a past life of mine came to you." Ten stated.

"Must have been before I met Barbara or Ian." Five added, "the only time I can really recall something like this."

"Must be."

"Alright you lot!" Ten exclaimed, "Let's meet the Vashta Nerada!"

He handed the chicken leg to Five. Ten then used his sonic screwdriver to attract this Vashta Nerada.

"Proper Dave," Ten asked, "could you move over a bit?"

"Why?" Proper Dave asked.

"Over there by the water cooler. Thanks." Five added.

Proper Dave moved over to the area as instructed.

"You surely acted nice to Miss Evangelista." Nyssa told Adric.

"I know how she felt." Adric replied, "it was like how I used to feel until my near death experience."

"But no offense, she was an airhead, unlike you. You're a smart boy. I did not say anything because I didn't want to hurt her feelings. It's this River Song I don't trust."

"What do you mean? I mean, I am not too fond of her either, but you seem really huffy around her."

"With good reason. She just waltzes in here and expects the Doctor, either of those Doctors in this room to know her!"

"You have a good point there."

"Okay, got a live one!" Ten announced.

"That's not darkness down those tunnels," Five explained, "This is not a shadow. It is a swarm. A man eating swarm."

Five threw a chicken leg into the swarm and that chicken leg was consumed immediately.

"The piranhas of the air," Ten declared, "the Vashta Nerada."

"Literally the shadows that melt the flesh." Five added, "Most planets have them but usually in small clusters."

"Neither of us have seen an infestation on this scale," Ten stated, "or this aggressive."

"What do you mean?" Adric asked, "most planets?"

"Not Earth?" Donna added.

"Mmm. Earth." Five nodded, "and a billion other 's there's meat, there's Vashta Nerada. You can see them sometimes if you look. The dust in sunbeams."

"If they were on Earth, we'd know." Donna chided.

"Nah," Ten replied, "Normally they live on road kill but sometimes people go missing. Not everyone comes back out of the dark."

"Every shadow?" Adric asked.

"No," Ten answered, "but any shadow."

"So what do we do?" Rose asked.

Ten grabbed Rose's hand before glancing at Donna as Five glanced at Nyssa and Adric as Ten spoke, "Daleks – aim for the eye stalk. Sontarans, back of the neck. Vashta Nerada, run. Just run."

"Run?" River asked.

"Run where?" Nyssa added.

"This is an index point," Five explained, "there must be an exit teleport somewhere."

"Don't look at me," Lux told his crew as well as the double TARDIS crew that was glaring at him, "I haven't memorized the schematics."

"Doctor," Rose told her husband, "the little shop. They always make you go through the little shop on the way out where they can sell you stuff."

Ten looked into the room and exclaimed, "You're right. Brilliant wife! That's why I like the little shop."

"Okay, let's move it!" Proper Dave exclaimed.

"Actually, Proper Dave..." Five asked, "could you stay where you are for a moment?"

"Why?"

Five glanced at Ten to break the news as he knew how to do so. With that, Ten stepped forward to Proper Dave, "We're sorry. We are so, so sorry, but you've got two shadows."

Everyone looked to see that Proper Dave now had two shadows. Five proceeded to explain, "It is how they hunt. They latch into a food source and keep it fresh."

"What do I do?" Proper Dave asked.

"You stay absolutely still." Ten instructed, "Like there's a wasp in the room. Like there's a million wasps."

"We're not leaving you Dave." River assured the pilot.

"Of course we are not leaving you, Dave." Ten chimed in, "Where's your helmet? Don't point. Just tell me."

"On the floor, by my bag." Proper Dave answered.

"Don't cross his shadow!" Five told Anita as she went to get Proper Dave's helmet. She got the helmet to him safely.

"Thanks," Ten instructed the rest of the crew, "now the rest of you, helmets back on and sealed up. We'll need everything we got."

"Doctor," Adric spoke up, "we haven't got any helmets."

"Yeah, but we're safe anyway." Ten replied.

"How are we safe?" Nyssa asked.

"We're not." Five replied, "he just came up with a clever lie to keep you guys quiet."

"Professor," Ten asked, "anything I can do with the suits?"

"What good are the damn suits?" Lux demanded, "Miss Evangelista was wearing a suit and there was nothing left."

"We can increase the mesh density." River told the two Doctors, "Dial it up to 400 percent. Make it a tougher meal."

"Okay." Ten replied before using his sonic screwdriver to increase the mesh density as River planned, "800 percent. Pass it on."

"Gotcha." River replied with what looked like her own sonic screwdriver.

"What's that?" Five asked.

"It's a screwdriver." River answered.

"It's a sonic." Ten looked surprised at the sight.

"Yeah, I know. Snap!" River replied. The Fifth Doctor recalled losing his sonic screwdriver during the encounter with a Terileptil leader, saving his companions, he wasn't in any use at the moment, at least so he thought.

"Here." River gave her sonic screwdriver to Five, "I believe you will need this more than I do right now, especially in the future."

"Well, thank you. Anyone else you need help with increasing mesh density?" Five thanked her before asking.

"Already taken care of." River replied.


	7. Things Just Got Worst

"Now, my group!" Ten chimed his companions as well as Five's companions, "Double TARDIS team!"

"With us, come on!" Five added. The group headed over to the shop as they were going to teleport Adric, Nyssa to their TARDIS and teleport Donna and Rose to their TARDIS.

"This is going to be a Doctor's job from now on." Five declared.

"What are we doing here?" Nyssa asked.

"Are we shopping?" Adric added.

"Is it a good time to shop?" Donna chimed in.

"No talking!" Ten instructed, "Just moving! All of you! Try it, right. Stand out in the middle. It's a teleport! Stand in the middle. Can't send the others. The TARDIS won't recognize them."

"Mine either." Five added, "There we go!"

Five sighed with satisfaction as Nyssa and Adric were on one side and Donna and Rose were on the other side.

"Oh no." Ten groaned.

"What?" Five asked.

"We can only teleport two at a time." Ten explained, "and if it's in different destinations, one at a time per destination."

Adric looked at Nyssa before telling Five, "I'll go first. Nyssa can join me momentarily."

"But Adric," Nyssa objected, "with the state this library is in, there is no telling what will happen if you return to the TARDIS, if you return at all."

"Just do it, okay?" Adric insisted.

Reluctantly, Five gestured Nyssa to step out to let Adric enter the Five TARDIS first.

"I saw Rose glowing when we first met you guys." Nyssa stated, "she could be of use to you two Doctors."

"Bad Wolf Immortal." Ten said quietly before speaking up, "Of course! Rose, please step down!"

"You're right." Rose stated, "my Bad Wolf Immortal powers could be of use, with whatever is going on here."

She stepped out of the pad and joined her husband(s) and Nyssa.

"Hold on a moment!" Donna exclaimed, "What are you doing?"

"You don't have a suit," Ten answered, "you're not safe!"

"You don't have a suit. None of you do," Donna protested, "so you're in just as much danger as I am and I'm not..."

"Donna," Adric calmly explained, "our Doctors are taking us to our respective TARDIS and we will be safe there and we'll be out of here if anything gets worse."

Adric looked over to the Fifth Doctor and Nyssa, "Good luck, Doctor. Goodbye, Nyssa. I'll see you soon."

"Don't jinx this for us this time, okay?" Nyssa replied with a small smile, "We almost lost you last time."

With that, both Donna and Adric were teleported to their respective TARDIS locations.

"Doctor and Doctor!" River shouted from the index room.

"Let's go." Ten told the group, "they need us!"

Adric found himself in the main room of the Fifth Doctor's TARDIS, but something didn't feel right. He felt a strange surge go through his body.

"Wh...what?" Adric was startled by the feeling, "What?"

Followed by that he was hearing a female voice screaming. Adric covered his ears at the sound of the screaming just moments before he vanished from the TARDIS.

Five, Ten, Rose and Nyssa returned to the index room to find the extra shadow on Proper Dave have vanished.

"Where did it go?" Ten asked.

"It's gone," Proper Dave answered, "I looked around, one shadow, see?"

"We can see that." Nyssa replied.

"Does that mean we can leave?" River asked, "I don't want to hang around here."

"I don't know why we're still here." Lux stated, "We can leave him, can't we? I mean, no offense."

"Shut up, Mr. Lux." Nyssa snapped at the man.

"She's right." River added, "Shut up."

"Did you feel anything like an energy transfer?" Five asked, "Anything at all?"

"No," Proper Dave answered, "No, but look it's gone."

"Stop there." Ten told the pilot, "Stop. Stop. Stop there. Stop moving."

"My future self is right." Five nodded, "they're never just gone and they never give up."

Ten scanned the floor with his sonic screwdriver, "Mmmm. This one's benign."

"Hey, who turned out the lights?" Proper Dave asked.

"No one," Five answered, "they're fine."

"No seriously," Proper Dave insisted, "turn them back on."

"They are on." Rose assured him.

"I can't see a ruddy thing." Proper Dave told the group.

"Dave, turn around." Ten told the distraught pilot.

"What's going on?" Proper Dave asked, "Why can't I see? Is the power gone? Are we safe here?"

"Dave," Ten instructed, "we want you to stay still. Absolutely still."

Everyone in the room was startled as it appeared as if Proper Dave was being eaten alive from inside his suit.

"Dave," Five tried calling for the pilot, "Dave, Dave, can you hear us?"

"Talk to us, Dave!" Ten called this time.

"I'm fine." stated Proper Dave, "I'm okay. I'm fine."

"I want you to stay still." Ten told the still pilot, "Absolutely still."

"I'm fine. I'm okay. I'm fine."

"You don't think he is ghosting, do you?" Nyssa asked.

"I can't...Why can't I? I...I can't...Why can't I? I..."

"You might be right, Nyssa." River told the Traken.

"I can't...Why can't I? I..."

"He's ghosting." Rose announced, "He's gone."

"I can't...Why can't I? I..."

"Then why is he still standing?" Lux asked.

"Hey, who turned out the lights? Hey, who turned out the lights?"

"Doctor, don't!" River exclaimed, not really addressing either Doctor.

"Dave, can you hear us?" Ten asked.

"Hey, who turned out the lights?"

Proper Dave grabbed Ten as Five took a step back. Proper Dave was dead, and the Vashta Nerada had taken over.

"Who turned out the lights?"

"Doctor, my screwdriver!" River shouted at Five.

"Oh, that is right!" Five looked at the screwdriver before going after Proper Dave, "Excuse me!"

That attacked didn't eliminate the Vashta Nerada but it freed Ten from its grasp.

"Back from it!" Ten exclaimed, "Get back! Right back!"

Everyone did as they were told.

"Doesn't move that fast in a suit, does it?" Nyssa asked.

"It's a swarm in a suit." Ten answered, "but it's learning."

"Lovely." Rose replied with some sarcasm.

"What do we do?" Lux asked, "Where do we go?"

"See that wall behind you?" River asked, "Duck!"

She used a squareness gun to create a door for the group to go through it and escape the Vashta Nerada, at least for the time being, for the moment.

"Everybody out." River told everyone in the room, "Go, go! Move it! Move! Move! Move it! Move! Move!"

Ten, Rose, Five, Nyssa, River, Lux, Other Dave and Anita hurried out of the Index room and into the hallway.

"You said not every shadow." Nyssa stated.

"But any shadow." Ten replied.

"Hey, who turned out the lights?"

"Run." River told the group. Everyone ran down the halls of the library with the Vashta Nerada after them.

The group managed to get to a safe place for the time being as Five and Ten used the sonic screwdrivers to get the lights working in their chances with the Vashta Nerada.

"Trying to boost the power." Ten said, "Light doesn't stop them, but it slows them down."

"So what's the plan?" River asked.

"We have a plan?" Rose added. Ten was amazed how Five's gift, River's sonic screwdriver was working better than his own sonic screwdriver.

"Your screwdriver." Ten told River, "Looks exactly like mine."

"Yeah." River replied, "You gave it to me."

"I never give my screwdriver to anyone. Not even my beloved Rose."

"You must've not remembered or something. I surely don't remember doing that." Five stated working on the lights.

"What is the plan?" River asked.

"I teleported Donna to my TARDIS and my past self teleported Adric to his TARDIS," Ten explained, "If we don't get back there in under five hours, Emergency Programme One will activate."

"And it will take them home." Five added, "but with Adric, it is complicated. He comes from E Space on the planet Alzarius. I guess maybe it might find a way to take him to E Space and from then, maybe Romana might know what to do."

"Who's Romana?" River asked.

"Another Time Lord...a Time Lady I left on E Space." Five answered.

"She's not there." Ten stated about Donna, "I should've received a signal. Past me, check your screwdriver for Adric."

Five did so with River/his screwdriver and was alarmed about getting the same result, "What? We sent him to my TARDIS just like with Donna and your TARDIS!"

"The console signals me if there's a teleport breach." Ten said in worry.

"Maybe the coordinates have slipped." River theorized, "the equipment here is ancient."

"We have to find Adric!" Nyssa exclaimed.

"We will!" Five calmly assured his companion, "Donna too."

Ten and Five ran to the nearest Node to find whereabouts of their respective companions and Nyssa and Rose quickly followed Ten was quick to ask, "Adric or Donna Noble. They are somewhere in this library."

"Do you have the software to locate their position?" Five added.

The Node turned around, wearing Donna's face, "Donna Noble has left the library. Donna Noble has been saved."

"Donna!" Ten gasped as Rose clasped her mouth in shock.

"Adric has left the library. Adric has been saved."

"Adric!" Five paled at the announcement.

"No!" Nyssa cried in horror as her doctor hugged her for comfort.

"How can it be them?" River asked, "How's that possible?"

"Donna Noble has left the library. Donna Noble has been saved. Adric has left the library. Adric has been saved."

"What have I done?" Ten asked in despair as Five was at a loss of words, as both Doctors wondered if they would ever see their respective companions again.

"Hey, who turned out the lights?"

"Donna Noble has left the library..."

"Doctor!" Rose called for her husband(s).

"Hey, who turned out the lights?"

"Adric has left the library..."

"Doctor, we must go now!" Nyssa told both Doctors. Five, Ten, Rose, Nyssa, River, Lux, Anita and Other Dave made a run for it.

"Hey, who turned out the lights?"

"Donna Noble has left the library..."

"Hey, who turned out the lights?"

"Adric has left the library..."

"Hey, who turned out the lights?"

The group had reached a dead end, nowhere to run and both Doctors in despair over losing a companion each.

"Donna Noble has left the library..."

"Hey, who turned out the lights?"

"Adric has left the library..."

"Hey, who turned out the lights?"

"Adric has been saved."

"Doctor..." Rose began.

"Doctor..." Nyssa added at the same time.

"What are we gonna do?!" both girls asked in unison.


	8. New Life, New World or is it?

“Hey, who turned out the lights? Hey, who turned out the lights?”

Nyssa grabbed River's squareness gun to provide the others with another escape, “This way! Quickly! Move!”

“Hey, who turned out the lights?”

Five, Nyssa, Ten, Rose, River, Lux, Anita and Other Dave made a run for it through the provided escape for them.

Adric realized that he wasn't dreaming as he found himself in what looked like a hospital room. He then stood up when a professional looking man walked into the room with Donna in tow.

“Hello, Adric.” the man cheerfully greeted him.

“Who are you?” Adric asked in confusion.

“I'm Dr. Moon. I've been treating you since you came here two years ago.” the man said kindly, “Remember when you were brought into the orphanage and not too long ago Donna agreed to adopt you.”

Adric looked over at Dr. Moon, and then at his friend/foster mom, “Oh. Oh! Dr. Moon. I am sorry. What is wrong with me? I didn't know you for a moment.”

“And then you remembered.” Dr. Moon replied before suggesting, “Shall we go for a walk?”

Adric blinked and the three of them were at some sort of garden.

“No more dreams, then?” the black man asked the young man, “The Doctor, the blue box, time and space. Donna told me about those dreams that she considers nightmares.”

“We were worried about you, child.” Donna added.

Adric looked around in confusion, “How did we get here?”

“We came down the stairs, out the front door.” Dr. Moon answered.

“We passed Mrs. Ali on the way out.” Donna added.

Adric looked up at the building which sign read the initials CAL on front.

_What is CAL? _Adric could hear a familiar voice yell out in frustration.

“Hello? Adric?”

“Huh?” Adric glanced over at Donna and Dr. Moon, “Sorry. I forgot.”

“And then you remembered.” Dr. Moon replied calmly before suggesting, “Shall we go down to the river?”

Adric found himself at a river with Donna and Dr. Moon in confusion as his head swam, “Hey. You said river and suddenly we are feeding ducks.”

“We walked here, Adric,” Dr. Moon replied, “Don't you remember?”

“Dr. Moon! Morning!” a man smiled as he walked over at the area.

“Adric, this is Donna's fiance, Lee McAvoy.” Dr. Moon introduced the older man to the younger man.

Adric looked in surprise as he greeted the stranger, and took it in as comfort as the man seemed to be nice as they both shook hands.

“Hello, Lee.” Donna greeted her fiance.

“Hello, D....D...D....” Lee stammered.

“He's got a bit of a stammer there, bless.” Donna told Adric with a fondness in her smile.

“D......D.....”

“Oh,” Donna replied, “skip to a vowel, they're easy.”

Adric nodded in assurance.

As they all laughed, Adric found himself back in the hospital garden with Dr. Moon.

“How did I get here?” he asked.

“You were brought here after your car accident two years ago,” Dr. Moon answered in a tone in which it seemed that he told him this before, “when you lost your father and two older sisters. Donna recently agreed to adopt you as her son.”

Hot tears managed to sting his eyes having the memories in his mind, “Oh, yeah. When can I see Donna again?”

The doctor patted his arm, “I got an impression that she and Lee were taking you on a short trip tomorrow.”

The next thing Adric knew, he was sitting in the pouring rain with Donna and Lee under an umbrella with the remains of a soggy picnic.

Lee tried to speak, “D.....D.....”

Donna nudged at her “son”, “Gorgeous and can't speak a word. What am I gonna do with him?”

Adric blinked and he found himself wearing a suit as Donna and Lee were getting married and were at the altar. The couple shared a kiss as a newly married couple.

“You look very lovely, Donna!” Adric told the red head.

“Thank you, son.” Donna replied.

“W...when you are much b...better,” Lee added, “you will live with us as our son.”

Adric looked down, “Thanks. You two are very kind to me. Too kind.”

“Nonsense.” Donna insisted, “No child should be left out in the streets. Not even a child your age. Besides, you're a part of our family now and we want you here.”

Adric blinked again to find himself on the couch with Dr. Moon, looking through photos in a photo book as Donna carried in tea as Adric's two younger brother and sister ran through the house like wild things.

“Stop it.” Donna told her children, “Stop it now. We got a visitor. Adric, tell your brother and sister.”

“You heard Mum!” Adric told his siblings, “Now listen to her or we will not be going to the zoo.”

Dr. Moon smiled at the young man, “You've done so much in seven years, Adric.”

Adric sighed, “Well, to tell you the truth, it feels more like 70. At times, it feels like no time at all.”

Donna pat his shoulder, “Adric, you've had a rough time of things before you met us. It's been so good to have you here. Happy as I am with Lee.....and I know you know how much I love your father......it wouldn't have been nice without you here.”

Adric looked down feeling his eyes water, “I know. I thank you two for everything. I just wish.”

“I know.” Donna comforted him. They hugged and Dr. Moon stood up and prepared to leave, “Can I just say what a pleasure it is to see you fully integrated?”

Suddenly, Dr. Moon appeared fuzzy and then vanished, revealing the image of a frustrated looking Tenth Doctor working on the sonic screwdriver, “The signal's definitely coming from the moon. I'm blocking it, but it's trying to break through. Adric!”

He faded and Dr. Moon appeared again, patting his stomach, “Oops. Sorry. Mrs. Angelo's rhubarb surprise. Will I never learn?”

Adric stood in surprise as Donna backed away as they were both surprised.

“The Doctor!” Adric exclaimed, “I saw the Doctor! Donna!”

“I saw him too!” Donna nodded.

“Yes, you did. You both did, and then you forgot.”

There was a moment of blankness between the two before Donna spoke up, “Oh, Dr. Moon. Hello. Shall I get you a cup of tea?”

What was really going on, while Donna was fully integrated into the program of this new world that she was in, Adric was in a different state, partially integrated into the program and with the exception of the Doctor, or Doctors, faces are quite fuzzy and he felt as if something wasn't right.


	9. High Tensions

Five, Ten, Nyssa, Rose, River, Lux, Anita and Other Dave arrived at another section of the library as they looked around in surprise panic.

"Okay," River told the others, "We've got a clear spot. In! In! In! Right in the center in the middle of the light! Don't let your shadows cross."

Everyone entered into the clear spot of the library as instructed as Ten and Five went to another area, examing the shadows in the room.

"Doctors..." River called for the two Doctors.

"We're doing it." Ten replied, working on the sonic screwdriver.

"There's no light there." Rose stated.

"Sunset is coming," Nyssa observed, "so we cannot stay long."

"You found a live one?" River asked the two Doctors.

"Maybe," Ten answered, "it is getting harder to tell."

He was frustrated with his sonic screwdriver not working, "What is wrong with you?!"

"We're going to need a chicken leg." River told her crew, "Who's got a chicken leg?"

Other Dave handed River a chicken leg, "Thanks, Dave."

River threw the chicken leg into the shadows which devoured the piece of meat on the spot, just like before. Then she stepped back, "Okay. Okay, we got a hot one. Watch your feet."

Rose and Nyssa followed River to where the two Doctors were for two different reasons: Rose was concerned for her husband and Nyssa was very angry with River as the Doctors were near another shadowed area of the room.

"They won't attack until there's enough of them." Five announced, "but they've got our scent now. They are coming."

"River, who are they?" Other Dave asked, "You haven't told us and you expect us to just trust them."

"He's the Doctor." River answered, "they both are known as the Doctor."

"And who is the Doctor?" Lux asked with superior sneer.

"The only story you will ever tell," River told her crew, "if you survive either of them."

"You say he is your friend," Anita told her, "but he doesn't know who you are. Neither of them do."

"Listen," River insisted, "all you need to know is this, I trust that man to the end of the universe and they must've had their memories cleared of their meeting with me or something."

"I see." Anita nodded, "so that's why they do not act like they trust you."

River walked over to where the two Doctors, Rose and Nyssa were.

"What's wrong with it?" River asked the Tenth Doctor.

"There's a signal coming from somewhere." the Fifth Doctor answered.

"Signal." Rose stated, "and it appeared to be blocking the screwdrivers for some reason."

"Interfering with it." Ten added.

"Well, use the red settings." River suggested.

"It doesn't have a red settings." Ten quipped.

"Well, use the dampers."

"It doesn't have dampers."

"Five, try it with the sonic screwdriver I gave you."

Ten looked at his screwdriver then at the one Five was holding, "So sometime in the future, I just give you my sonic screwdriver?"

"Yeah."

"Why would I do that?"

"I didn't pluck it from your cold, dead hands if that's what you're worried about."

"And we know that because..." Five finally spoke up.

"Listen to me. Both of you." River told the two Doctors, "you've lost your friends, you're angry. I understand but you need to be less emotional right now, both of you..."

"Less...I'm not emotional." Ten objected.

"Neither am I." Five added, "You may not care, but we care about our friends!"

"There are nine people in this room still alive." River continued, "focus on that!"

"That is funny." Nyssa finally spoke up with an icy tone in her voice, "you acted like you did not care when you mentioned that we lost Adric and Donna. Acting like they did not have a name!"

"Nyssa..." Five began.

"Look Nyssa," Ten calmly told the angry Traken, "I know you are angry..."

"I will handle this." River told the Doctors before looking at Nyssa, "Look, I get that you are angry over losing your friend, but there's no reason for you placing blame, and yes I do care. Both Doctors care as well."

"Yeah, you care except that the Doctors actually did the best that they could with what they knew," Nyssa continued, "and they would've gotten Adric safely into the TARDIS had someone had told us about the equipment in this place, but you...you didn't do anything that could have helped them!"

"That is enough!" Rose finally stepped in glowing gold in the process, "Nyssa, I know you are angry over losing Adric, but in case you have not noticed, we lost Donna too! Also, I get you don't really like River all that much, I don't either, but there is no logical reason to take your frustrations out on her!"

"Oh for heaven's sake!" Lux exclaimed, "Look at the lot of you! We're all gonna die right here and you are just squabbling like a feuding family!"

"You're right." Nyssa finally calmed down and rubbed her head, "You're right of course. I'm sorry. I just want Adric back, and I trust you guys want Donna back too. We have to focus on making it out alive."

"Doctor," River looked at both Doctors, "and Doctor. I believe that you can trust me to save your friends, but I can't wait for you two to find out. So I am going to prove it to you, and I'm sorry. I am really, very, sorry."

River went and whispered something into first the Tenth Doctor's ear, and then the Fifth Doctor's ear. What she whispered surprised both Doctors. Rose and Nyssa looked on in confusion. It was his real name, something that not even

"Doctor?" Nyssa started.

"What did she say?" Rose asked.

"I will explain later," Ten told his wife, "provided we get out of here alive."

"And we will." Rose assured her husband.

"I am going to guess it is something Time Lord related," Nyssa took a guess, "and something only very few are allowed to know."

"Yeah." Five nodded, "and let's leave it at that, okay?"

Nyssa nodded, preferring not to be too nosy about the situation.

"So, are we good?" River asked the two Doctors.

Silence, no answer.

"Doctor," River took a glance at each Doctor, "and Doctor. Are we good?"

"Yeah." Ten answered.

"Yeah, we're good." Five added.

"Good." River replied.


	10. Another Twist in the Road

River rejoined the rest of the group. Followed by Rose and Nyssa.

"Was that your Bad Wolf Immortal powers that you used when you were glowing?" Nyssa asked Rose.

"Yeah." Rose nodded, "Yeah, it was. I consider it both a gift and a curse if you will."

"So it is bad in some sort of way?"

"Bad Wolf has a knack for being trouble for a lot of people. My Mum is currently locked in a psych ward because I used my powers to defend the Doctor when she tried to kill him. It made her insane."

"Now what's interesting about my screwdriver," Ten spoke up as he and Five re joined the group, "very hard to interfere with. Practically nothing is strong enough, well, some hair dryers, but I'm working on that."

"So," Five added, "there is a very strong signal coming from somewhere, and it wasn't new there before. So, what's new? What changed? And I gather my sonic screwdriver would be no use either if I had it."

No answer.

"Come on!" Ten shouted, "What's new? What's different?"

"I don't know." Other Dave answered, "Nothing. It's getting dark."

"It's a screwdriver." Five firmly told the black man, "it works in the dark."

"Moonlight." Ten looked up at the moon light before them before looking at Lux, "Tell us about the moon. What's there?"

"It is not real." Lux answered, "it was built as part of the library. It's just a doctor moon."

"What's a doctor moon?" Five asked.

"A virus checker." Lux answered, "It supports and maintains the main computer at the core of the planet."

"Glad someone's finally cooperating with the Doctors." Nyssa said quietly with a small smile.

"Well, it's still quite active," Ten said with his screwdriver pointing up, "it's signaling. Look. Someone somewhere is alive and communicating with the moon."

"Or possibly alive and drying their hair." Five sarcastically added.

"Do not joke around!" Ten exclaimed at his predecessor, "you told me yourself not to joke around! Anyway, signal is definitely coming from the moon. I'm blocking it, but it's trying to break through."

"Doctor!" Rose exclaimed. Everyone looked to see a flicker catching the eye and they looked to see an image of a shocked and hopeful Adric as Ten exclaimed, "Adric!"

The image faded causing Ten to growl in frustration and Five even tried to bring the image back.

"Doctor, that was Adric!" Nyssa exclaimed, "Bring him back!"

"What was that?" Rose asked.

"I am trying to get him back, believe me, Nyssa," Ten tried using his sonic screwdriver as Five did the same with River's, "trying to find the wavelength."

"We're being blocked!" Five this time growled in frustration.

"Professor..." Anita began.

"Just a moment." River told her.

"It's important." Anita announced, "I have two shadows."

Nyssa gasped in surprise. Everyone turned and looked to see Anita with two shadows.

"Helmets on everyone." River told her crew, "Anita, I'll get yours."

"It didn't do Proper Dave any good." Anita said with fear trembling her voice as Lux and Other Dave proceeded to get their helmets on.

"Just keep it together, okay?" River told her crew mate.

"Keep it together." Anita said tearfully, "I'm only crying. I'm about to die, it's not an overreaction."

River placed the helmet on Anita before putting her own helmet on as well.

"Hang on." Ten said using his sonic screwdriver on her, which caused her visor to go dark.

"What did you do?" Five asked.

"They've gotten inside!" River gasped.

"No, no." Ten replied, "I just tinted her visor."

"Oh. So I see," Five replied, "Maybe they'll think they're already in there. Good plan future me. Now, leave her alone."

"You think they could be fooled like that?" Nyssa asked.

"Maybe," Ten answered, "I do not know."

"It is a swarm." Five added, " it is not like we chat."

"Can you still see, Anita?" Other Dave asked.

"Just about." Anita answered.

"Just stay back." Five told everyone in the room.

"Professor, quick word please." Ten told River.

"What?" River glanced at the two Doctors.

"Down there." Ten replied as the three knelt down.

"What is it?" River asked.

"You said there were nine people still alive in this room." Ten stated.

"Yeah, so?"

"Then why are we counting ten?" Five asked.

Everyone turned around to see the skeletal remains of Proper Dave in the suit appear in the room, "Hey, who turned out the lights?"

"Run!" Ten yelled. Everyone made a run for it. A fast run for it.


	11. Closer Suspicions

Adric found himself reading a book on the table as he glanced around in confusion.

"What happened?" Adric asked in confusion.

"Why you got home from school silly," Donna answered, "I am so proud of you making all A's in school and now you are reading a book as part of your assignment."

Adric shrugged and continued to read quietly.

"Have you seen Doctor Moon?" Donna asked.

"No," Adric answered, "I haven't."

When Lee got home, he, Donna, Adric and the two kids Ella and Josh were up late, laughing over stories, including one of Lee's work that he explained about. It was good until the two kids were teasing Adric over the fact he liked to study. Even going as far as knocking down the book that the older boy was reading.

"Ella and Josh!" Donna scolded the younger children, "that was not very nice! Your brother just wants to get an education, something you two will be doing when you get older! Just because he is adopted does not give you two the right to bully him like that, now apologize!"

"Sorry, Adric." Ella and Josh told their older brother in unison.

"It is quite alright." Adric replied. The group was startled hearing a tap on the window.

"Go see what it is." Donna elbowed her husband.

As Lee went to check on what the noise was, Adric and Donna looked outside the window to see a mysterious woman dressed in black from head to toe. This gave Adric chills for a strange reason.

"You alright?" Donna asked.

"Yeah." Adric answered, "Of course I am alright."

"The world is wrong."

Donna and Adric looked to see that Lee had returned.

"What?" Donna quipped.

"What's that?" Adric added.

"For you, Donna." Lee answered with a note in his hands, "weird though."

He proceeded to read the note, _Dear Donna, the world is wrong. Meet me at your usual play park tomorrow at 2 o clock. Bring Adric._

Adric felt a knot in his throat, but somehow managed to gulp as he was starting to believe that his suspicions of this place, where he was at were correct. Donna however was dense of the whole thing.

"Nutter." Donna replied as she, Adric and Lee looked outside the window as the veiled figure walked away, down the streets.

"Maybe so." Adric crossed his arms, "but whoever sent this to us may be on to something. I say we should go."

The next thing he knew, Adric was arriving at the park with Donna, Ella and Josh.

"I guess I spoke too soon." Adric chimed in.

"Not really." Donna replied before looking at the younger children, "Alright you two. Off you go, no fighting."

Donna and Adric met with the veiled woman sitting at a nearby park bench.

"We got your note last night." Adric was the first to speak up.

"The world is wrong." Donna asked, "what does that mean?"

"Is this place an illusion?" Adric asked in curiousity.

"No you didn't." the woman spoke up.

"I'm sorry, what?" Donna piqued.

"You didn't get my note last night." the woman explained, "You got it a few seconds ago. Having decided to come, you two suddenly found yourselves arriving. That is how time progresses here, in the manner of a dream. You suspected that before, haven't you, Adric?"

"How do you know me?" Adric asked.

"We met before in the library." the woman answered, "You and Donna Noble were kind to me. I hope now to return that kindness."

Adric leaped out of the bench and took a step back. He remembered everything. He wasn't crazy or out of touch. He hadn't lost his "father"/the Doctor or his "sisters"/Nyssa and Tegan as the latter was at present day Earth. He needed to get back to them as well as the other Doctor. He felt the familiar sound that was the TARDIS materializing. Adric saw the strange virtual world that he was trapped in.

"Your voice..." Donna told the woman, "I recognize it."

"Yes you do," the woman revealed herself, "I am what's left of Miss Evangelista."


	12. Doctors versus the Swarm

Other Dave, Lux, Anita, River, Ten, Five, Nyssa and Rose were making a run for it in hopes of escaping the Vashta Nerada.

"Professor," Ten told River, "go ahead. Find a safe spot."

"It is a carnivorous swarm in a suit!" River objected, "You can't reason with it."

"Don't you go and question us now!" Five exclaimed.

"Five minutes!" Ten added, "Rose, Nyssa, make sure they do they are told!"

Rose nodded and Nyssa did not need to be told twice.

"Other Dave," River told her crewmate, "stay with those two Doctors. Pull them out when they are too stupid to live!"

"You really have some nerve talking about the Doctor that way, you know that?" Rose chided as they left leaving Other Dave with the two Doctors.

"I agree with her on that." Nyssa added.

Other Dave was with the two Doctors with what they were planning to do.

The swarm in a suit arrived in the room, "Hey, who turned out the lights?"

"You hear that?" Ten started with the plan, "Those words? That is the very last of the man who wore that suit."

"Before you climbed inside and stripped his flesh." Five added, "That's a man's soul trapped inside a neural relay going round and round forever."

"Now," Ten proposed, "if you don't have the decency to let him go, how about this? Use him, talk to us."

"It's easy." Five added, "Just point and think. Use him, talk to us."

"Hey, who turned out the lights?"

"The Vashta Nerada live on all the worlds in this system," Five continued with the plan, "but you hunt in forests. What are you doing in a library?"

"We should go. Doctors!" Other Dave insisted.

"In a minute!" Five told the man.

"You came to a library to hunt." Ten told the swarm, "Why? Just tell us why."

"We did not..." the swarm began.

"Oh, hello." Ten chimed.

"We did not..."

"Take it easy," Five told the swarm, "you'll get the hang of it. Did not what?"

"We did not come here."

"Of course you did." Five replied, "Of course you came."

"We came from here."

"From here?" Ten asked.

"We hatched here."

"You hatch from trees. From spores in trees." Five told the swarm.

"These are our forests."

"You're nowhere near a forest." Five spoke as he and ten walked in front of the swarm, "Look around you."

"These are our forests."

"You're not in a forest." Ten insisted, "You're in a library. There are no trees in a..."

Ten and Five both looked up.

"Library."

"We should go. Doctors!"

"Books." Five realized, "You came from the books."

"Microspores in a million, million books." Ten added.

"We should go. Doctors!"

"Oh, look at that!"

The two Doctors looked outside in surprise.

"The forest of the Vashta Nerada," Five looked at Ten, "pulped and printed and bound."

"A million million books hatching shadows." Ten added.

"We should go. Doctors!"

Five and Ten looked to see that the swarm have now infested Other Dave as well.

"Oh, Dave!" Five exclaimed.

"Oh Dave." Ten added, "I'm so sorry!"

"Hey, who turned out the lights?"

"We should go. Doctors!"

"Thing about me at least, I'm stupid. I talk too much." Ten stated, "We were babbling on. This gob doesn't stop for anything."

"But do you want to know why we're still alive?" Five told the swarms in suits before Ten used his sonic screwdriver to set a trap door for both Doctors to escape, "Always stay near the door."

Five and Ten managed to climb at a nearby pipe they managed to grab and managed to meet up with Rose, Nyssa and the remainder of River's crew. Both sonic screwdrivers intact.


	13. Truths and Revelations Closing In

Adric held his head from the pain as he was taken in the information that he was given. His suspicions were true but he was not able to confirm it himself because of the strange computer program, whatever it was doing to him.

"My name is Adric," Adric spoke to himself as if he was reciting something important, "I am a companion to the Fifth Doctor along with my friends Tegan Jovanka and Nyssa of Traken. My home world is the planet Alzarius of E Space, a parallel universe. My mother's name is Talisa and my father's name is Morell. Both were killed in a forest fire. My older brother is named Varsh who was killed Marshmen when I first met the Doctor, and I stowed away and was tempted by vampires, all this before he regenerated shortly after we left E Space as well as Romana and K9."

"I suggested we meet here because the playground's the easiest way to see it." Miss Evangelista said as Adric faced her and Donna, "to see the lie."

"What lie?" Donna asked.

"The children," Miss Evangelista answered, "look at the children."

Donna refused to see. She didn't want to. She loved Lee and her children, even Adric. She didn't want the dream to end. None of it, "Come on, Adric. Tell her!"

Donna looked to see Adric beginning to flicker from the scene, "Oh no. Adric, please tell her!"

"I'm sorry, Donna." Adric said sadly, "I'm really sorry."

With that, Adric vanished from the scene leaving Donna with Miss Evangelista.

Adric found himself in a modern looking living room, "That was weird. Tegan? Are you there?"

"My name is not Tegan, and how did you get here?"

Adric turned around to find himself face to face with a little girl. The same little girl that he saw on the computer screen at the library when he was with the Doctors and Nyssa. He had to get back to them and soon.

As for the others in the library, River was talking to Lux, Anita, Nyssa and Rose about the Doctor she encountered just days before she came here.

"So you are telling us you know the Doctor." Rose stated, "even though neither Doctors in this place know you?"

"He is the Doctor." Anita stated, "He is coming back, right?"

"You know when you see a photograph of someone you know," River stated, "but it's long after you knew them? It's like the journey has long progressed and their memories have somehow been wiped of me. Either that or they are from another universe where they never encountered me. Yes, the Doctor is here. Two of them are. All I know is he can open the doors of his TARDIS with the snap of his fingers."

"Spoilers," Nyssa spoke up, "Nobody can open the TARDIS with the snap of their fingers. We require a key to open the TARDIS."

"Thank you Nyssa," Ten spoke up as he and Five arrived at the area, "We were about to say just that exactly."

"How does a Doctor do that?" Five asked, "Especially if it is one of our predecessors."

"I guess that Doctor is from another universe." River theorized before stated, "it worked for the Doctor."

"I am the Doctor." Five and Ten stated in unison.

"You WERE the Doctor." River replied.

"He is the Doctor!" Rose exclaimed.

"How are you doing?" Five asked Anita.

Nyssa added, "Rose is right. Now stop questioning our Doctors if you know what is good for you!"

"Where is Other Dave?" River asked.

"Not coming, sorry." Ten answered.

"Well if they've taken him," Anita asked, "why haven't they gotten me yet?"

"I don't know." Ten answered.

"Maybe my future self tinting your visor is making a difference." Five added.

"It is making a difference alright." Anita chided, "No one's ever gonna see my face again."

"Can we get you anything?" Five asked.

"An old age would be nice. Anything you can do?"

"Do not worry," Rose assured the woman, "My husband and his past self will be sure to get you through this. I know they will."

"We are all over it." Ten replied.

"Doctor," Anita told the two Doctors, "when we first met you, the two of you, you didn't trust Professor Song."

"Nyssa didn't either." Five stated, "I do not think she still does."

"Well, then she whispered a word into both of your ears and you did." Anita continued, "My life so far, I could do with a word like that. What did she say?"

No answer.

Anita chuckled, "Give a dead girl a break. Your secrets are safe with me."

"Safe." Ten chimed in.

"What?"

"Safe." Ten stated, "you don't say saved."

"Nobody says saved." Five added, "You say safe."

"The data fragment," Ten asked, "what did it say?"

"4,022 people saved. No survivors." Lux answered.

"As of now it is 4,024 counting Adric and Donna." Five piqued in.

"Doctor?" River chimed in.

"Nobody says saved," Rose stated, "Nutters say saved."

"You say safe," Ten added, "it didn't mean safe, it meant...it literally meant saved!"

"Saved!" Nyssa chimed in.


	14. Game Plans

Adric was face to face with the little girl as he sat on the couch in the living room, "Pardon me. My name is Adric. What is your name?"

"Charlotte." the little girl answered.

"Do not be afraid." Adric told the child, "I promise you it will be okay. I will only talk to you."

Charlotte looked at the slightly older boy, "You are not supposed to look. Everyone is happy when they do not look."

"Oh so I see." Adric replied, "I can tell you something really important."

"Okay. What?"

Adric took a deep breath before speaking, "Answer this for me. How does it feel with lots of people. You don't wanna tell them that they can't go home. Right?"

"I am protecting them."

Adric faced the girl, "You are part of this planet computer. I know it is hard cause I am a part of time with those I travel with. There's things I can't tell anyone else, despite the fact that I done so in the past, because if I do, things will get messed up."

"I am trying so hard!" Charlotte cried, "but I keep messing up!"

"I see." Adric nodded, "Maybe I can help you. I got the mathematical skills that can help with this strange system. You just help me understand the program and we can fix it."

"You really think so...Adric?"

"I know we will. It is only a matter of timing. I am going to figure out the calculations to help you fix this program and get everyone out. We cannot do it too early or too late for that matter because it will mess up, understand?"

Charlotte nodded in response.

"Good." Adric sighed with relief before sharing a smile that made the little girl slightly comfortable, "and I have a feeling that we have time on our side."

At the safe area, Five aided Ten in typing on an information terminal and they looked through the mechanical history of the library. Ten finally spoke up, "See? There it is. Right there. 100 years ago, massive power surge all going at once. Soon as the Vashta Nerada hit their hatching cycle, they attack. Someone hits the alarm. The computer tries to teleport everyone out."

"It tried to teleport 4,022 people?" Rose asked.

"Just as the Doctors tried with our friends." Nyssa realized, "that's why Adric...and Donna were saved into the library's computer system when the teleportation went wrong when the Doctors tried sending them back to their respective TARDIS."

"Exactly, Nyssa!" Five exclaimed.

"It did succeed," Ten answered, "pulled them out, then what? Nowhere to send them. Nowhere safe in the whole library. Vashta Nerada growing in every shadow. 4,022 people beamed up and nowhere to go."

"They are stuck in the system," Five added, "waiting to be sent, like emails. So what's a computer to do? What does a computer always do?"

"It saved them!" Rose exclaimed happily.

Five and Ten rushed to a nearby table where Ten drew a circle, followed by a smaller circle in the center scribbled, then an arrow and Five would explain everything going on thus far. Rose, Nyssa, River and Lux were not too far behind them.

"The library," Five explained, "a whole world of books. Right at the core is the biggest hard drive in history. The index to everything ever written, back up copies of every single book. The computer saved 4,022 people. Pardon me, including Adric and Donna, 4,024. The only way a computer can. They are all saved to the hard drive."


	15. No Time to Waste

The celebration was short lived when everyone in the room heard an alarm go off.

"What is it?" Lux asked in alarm, "What's wrong?"

"Auto destruct enabled in 20 minutes." a feminine voice echoed throughout the halls.

"That is not good!" Nyssa exclaimed.

"It never is." Rose chimed in.

Adric and Charlotte were working together to create a new "home" for those people that they would not be able to save. The little girl was amazed on how the older boy was able to help her with such task. The ones that have fallen to the Vashta Nerada and were lucky enough for their consciousness to be entangled within the data core. When the alarm echoed outside virtual space, the color turned red and they heard a strange sound, yet discordant.

"Adric," Charlotte asked, "if this world falls apart, will I go away too?"

"Do not worry," Adric tried assuring the girl, "I am not gonna let that happen."

"Doctor," Rose asked, "what is maximum erasure?"

"In twenty minutes," Five answered, "we will not be able to recover those that have been saved."

"Including Adric!" Nyssa exclaimed in fear.

"No." Lux assured the group, "No, it is alright. The doctor moon will stop it. It's programmed to protect CAL."

"Will it be so?" Nyssa asked the Fifth Doctor, "we have to save Adric...and Donna...and the others that have been saved."

"It had better." Five answered, "I almost lost Adric once. I am not about to lose him for real this time."

Adric looked in surprise as he realized that Dr. Moon was the one probably designed to keep the system from collapsing onto itself.

"Now you really must stop this you know. You've forgotten again, it was you who saved all those people, haven't you? And then, you remembered."

"Shut up, Dr. Moon!" Charlotte shouted in frustration before using her remote to make him disappear.

"Wait, stop!" Adric exclaimed, but he spoke too late as he appeared to be tense.

Suddenly, the computer screen shut off. Five and Ten were both alarmed by this.

"No, no, no, no, no!" Ten shouted in frustration, trying to get the computer to turn back on with his sonic screwdriver. Five was doing the same.

"All library systems are permanently offline," another computer voice chimed in, "Sorry for any inconvenience..."

"We need to stop this!" Lux insisted with panic in his voice, "We gotta save CAL!"

"What is it?" Five asked.

"What is CAL?" Ten added.

"We need to get to the main computer." Lux answered, "I'll show you."

"It is at the core of the planet." Rose stated.

"Well then," Nyssa replied, "let's go!"

"Fifth Doctor," River instructed, "Use your new screwdriver at the center of this room."

"Why's that?" Five asked.

"Trust me on this."

Five used the screwdriver in the center of the room which revealed a platform.

"Gravity platform." River revealed.

"Pains me to admit it," Nyssa stated, "but that was a neat find."

The seven entered the platform and arrived at the mainframe and were staring at a huge globe with energy swirling inside.

"Auto destruct in fifteen minutes."

"What is that?" Nyssa asked.

"The data core." Five answered.

"Over four thousand living minds inside it." Ten added.

"Yeah, well they won't be much longer." River told the group, "We're running out of time."


	16. CAL Revealed/New Plans

Everyone was in the computer area of the mainframe as they were alarmed by hearing a voice, "Help me. Please help me."

"What is that?" Nyssa asked, "is that a child?"

"The computer's in sleep mode." Ten announced.

"We need to wake it up." Five added.

"I'm trying." Ten told his past self.

"Doctor, these readings..." River told the two Doctors.

"I know. You'd think it was..." Five started.

"Dreaming." Ten finished the sentence.

"It is dreaming," Lux revealed as he prepared to pull a lever nearby, "of a normal life, and a lovely Dad, and of every book ever written."

"Computers don't dream." Anita chimed in.

"Help me. Please help me."

"No, but little girls do." Lux replied before pulling the lever.

Then, everyone hurried to the node in the room, revealing a little girl's face, "Please help me. Please help me."

"Oh my God." River gasped.

"It's the little girl." Rose stated.

"The little girl we saw on the computer." Nyssa added.

"She's not in the computer," Lux revealed, "In a way, she is the computer. The main command node. This is CAL."

"CAL is a child!" Five exclaimed.

"A child hooked on the mainframe!" Ten added, "Why didn't you tell us this?!"

"We needed to know this!" Five told Lux.

"Because she is family!" Lux answered before explaining about her, "CAL. Charlotte Abigail Lux. My grandfather's youngest child. She was dying, so we built her a library and put her living mind inside. The moon to watch over her, and all of human history to pass the time. Any era to live in, any book to read. She loved books more than anything, and he gave her them all. He asked that she be left in peace. A secret. Not a freak show."

"So you weren't protecting a patent," Five realized, "you were protecting her."

Lux stepped forward to the node and touched its face, "Hers was only half a life of course, but it is forever."

"And then the shadows came." Ten stated.

"The shadows." the Node spoke, "I have to...I have to save...have to save..."

"And she saved them." Five glanced at Ten, "She saved everyone in the library. Folded them into her dreams and kept them safe."

"Why didn't she tell us?" Anita asked.

"Because she's forgotten." Ten answered, "She's got over four thousand living minds chatting away inside her head. It must be like being, well..."

"Me!" Five and Ten said at the same time.

"Doctor?" Nyssa's curiosity piqued in at what they were planning to do.

"What do we do?" Rose asked.

"Auto destruct in ten minutes."

"Easy." Ten chimed in as Five followed him.

Adric looked over at Charlotte as they were making the final preparations of their plan.

"Adric," Charlotte asked, "is everything almost ready?"

"Almost," Adric answered, "did you delete everything that was made up?"

The little one nodded, "Now the people are getting scared. It is hard to separate them. The one that came with you with the red hair is one of them."

"Donna." Adric acknowledged that statement, "Do what you need to do. Just remember, you are not going to be alone this time. Those who didn't come with their bodies will be with you. Calculations are almost set."

Both Doctors made a run for it as they were setting their plans in motion, no time for anyone to argue. Not even Rose or Nyssa.

"We will beam the people out of the data core," Five stated, "the computer will reset, stop the countdown."

"Difficult." Ten stated as he was the Doctor closest to the main computer, "Charlotte doesn't have enough memory space left to make the transfer."

"Easy," Five opened a nearby hatch and pulled some wires, "One of us, the Doctor will hook ourselves up to the computer. She can borrow my memory space. The question is, which Doctor shall it be?"

"What?!" Nyssa exclaimed.

"Doctor!" Rose added, "You cannot be serious."

"Difficult!" River objected, "it'll kill both of you stone dead."

"Easy to criticize." Ten replied, "while my past self and I have the same brain capacity, I will be the one who does this since it will kill my future including me, if Five does."

"So you say." Five chided, "and I was about to nominate myself. Are we really gonna argue about this?"

"Only if you let me do this, we will."

Begrudgingly, Five nodded in agreement, "You win. You go for it."

"It'll burn out both your hearts," River told the two Doctors, "and don't think you'll regenerate!"

"I'll try my hardest not to die." Ten told her, "Honestly, it's the main thing."

"Doctor..." River started to say.

"I'm right." Ten stated, "This will work. Shut up!"

"Okay listen," Five told the group, "here's the plan. River, you and Lux go back up to the main library. Prime any data you can find for maximum download. Nyssa, you and Rose stay with me in case something goes wrong with my future self's plan."

"And before you say anything else," Ten told River, "can I just mention in passing, as you're here, shut up!"

River fumed in response, "Men! I hate you sometimes!"

"I believe that." Ten replied.

"Mr. Lux, with me." River told her crew, "Anita, if he or his past self dies, I'll kill them both!"

With that, River and Lux left, leaving Anita with the two Doctors, Rose and Nyssa.


	17. Endgame of the Library Part One

"What about the Vashta Nerada?" Anita asked the Doctors.

"These are their forests." Ten answered, "I'm gonna seal Charlotte in her little world, take everybody else away. The shadows can swarm to their hearts content."

"So you think they're gonna let us go?"

"Doctor." Rose started to glow gold again, sensing something unusual.

"Best offer they're gonna get." Ten replied, working on the remainder of his plan.

"You're gonna make them an offer?"

"They'd better take it." Five answered.

"Yeah. He's right." Ten added, "cause right now, I'm finding it very hard to make any kind of offer at all."

"Doctor!" Rose exclaimed. Ten noticed his wife glowing before looking at "Anita", "You know what? I really liked Anita."

"She was brave," Five added, "even when she was crying, and she never gave in."

"And you ate her." Ten firmly concluded. Five used River's screwdriver to reveal that the swarm have now eaten Anita and all that is left is the swarm and her skeletal remains. Nyssa gasped as she clasped her mouth in shock. Rose only stood there, glowing gold.

"But we will let that pass," Five stated, "just as long as you let them pass."

"How long have you known?"

"We counted the shadows," Ten answered, "not to mention when my wife glows like that, she usually senses a disturbance or is about to attack. Perks of being Bad Wolf Immortal."

"You only have one shadow now." Five added.

"She's nearly gone." Ten said, "Be kind."

"These are our forests. We are not kind."

"We are giving you back your forests," Ten told the swarm, "but you are giving us them. You are letting them go."

"These are our forests. They are our meat."

"Don't play games with us." Ten firmly told the swarm as it was aiming for the two Doctors and the girls, "You just killed someone we liked and that is not a safe place to stand. I'm the Doctor and so is the blonde man with me, and this is my wife Rose Tyler, also known as Bad Wolf Immortal and you're in the biggest library in the universe. Look us up!"

Silence filled the room for a about a minute as the swarm stopped and Rose's glowing slowly faded out, meaning the danger was deceasing.

"Doctor. Bad Wolf Immortal. You have one day."

With that, the swarm form of Anita collapsed. Rose held her head in pain, sensing something, "Someone is coming. Adric?"

Rose then collapsed herself. Seconds later, River arrived and knocked out first the Tenth Doctor, and then the Fifth Doctor in case he tried to do anything, leaving her and Nyssa the only ones still conscious in the room.


	18. Endgame of the Library Part Two

Adric marveled on how the library's computer system worked. He found that downloading himself from Charlotte's database was trickier than he calculated. He felt the fluctuation as he passed through the corrupt signals and patted himself to be sure things were in place and correct.

"Adric!" he heard Nyssa exclaimed, "How?"

He turned around to see Nyssa standing in front of him. Then he looked to see Rose close by them unconscious.

"What happened to her?" Adric asked.

"Don't ask." Nyssa answered, "I think it has something to do with her Bad Wolf Immortal powers."

"This is not a joke!" they heard the Tenth Doctor shout from nearby, "Stop this now. This is gonna kill you."

Adric and Nyssa arrived at a safe distance to find the Fifth and Tenth Doctors strapped in handcuffs on opposite sides of the corridor while River was strapping herself to what looked like a make shift electric chair.

"My future self has a chance!" the Fifth Doctor told her, "you do not have any!"

"Neither of you would have a chance!" River insisted before explaining, "and neither do I. I'm timing it for the end of the countdown. There will be a blip in the command flow, that way it should improve our chances of a clean download."

As River was talking to the Doctor, Adric looked over at Nyssa.

"Aren't you gonna do something?! Nyssa, do something!" Adric asked, "We cannot just stand there!"

"She told me to stay behind to look after Rose." Nyssa answered, "and I think we should head back to check on her."

"There's nothing you two can do." River told the two Doctors as they tried to reach for their respective screwdrivers and the journal.

"You can let me do this!" Ten exclaimed.

"You can't!" River insisted, "it will destroy the time flow that is meant to happen! Something else that your first incarnation explained to me when he came to me with his granddaughter Susan. This is my destiny: to be in here in the library."

Nyssa and Adric were listening close by and they agreed that this was probably for the best to leave things in her hands before going back to check on Rose.

"It's okay." River told the two Doctors, "Trust me on this. Also, the First Doctor said one more thing. Homeostasis is coming from within a TARDIS family team. He didn't explain that fully, but I assume it was important otherwise he wouldn't have said that."

"Homeostasis." Five said quietly.

"River, you know our name." Ten stated, "You whispered our name into each of our ear. There is only one reason I would ever tell anyone my name."

"Like when he married Rose." Five added.

"Hush now." River told the two Doctors, bidding them both her farewell, "Spoilers. Goodbye, sweeties."

With that, River plugged in the cords and then a huge explosion created a massive white light, killing her in the process while knocking out both Doctors.


	19. Aftermath

The Tenth Doctor and the Fifth Doctor regained consciousness to see Rose and Nyssa hovering over them. They found themselves laying on couches.

"What..." Five quipped, "What was that?"

"When River was killed in that explosion that got everyone beamed back here," Rose explained, "you two were knocked out as well."

"So everyone that was saved in the data core," Five stated, "they are back in the library."

"Where is River?"

"Gone." Nyssa answered, "She is dead. When Adric, Rose and I found you two, we saw no body in that chair she was sitting in."

"Adric." Five rose up, "Where is he?"

"He is looking for Donna," Nyssa explained, "He explained something about Donna not wanting to leave here without someone. He did not say who."

"Donna. She is back as well." Ten rose up as well.

"That is correct." Nyssa replied.

"That was a really risky and stupid move the both of you were trying to do!" Rose told the two Doctors, "You know what? I'm not even gonna say it."

Five and Ten agreed that it was a peeve of Rose being angry with both of them.

"What amazed me," Nyssa stated, "Adric returned to the library before River did that sacrifice. Before everyone returned."

"We need to find him." Ten stated, "Donna as well."

Five, Ten, Rose and Nyssa arrived at a terminal as people were coming there, reuniting with families who had long thought were lost. Suddenly, Adric arrived as he appeared to be excited, "Doctor! She found him!"

"She did?" Rose asked.

"Found who?" Nyssa added.

"Take us to her." Ten told his former companion. Adric pointed to a direction and they headed there to see Donna and Lee hugging.

"You found him, Donna!" Adric exclaimed happily.

"S...so, he is real, t...too?" Lee asked. His smile stayed present as his sight remained on Donna.

"Real as I can be." Adric chided, "I want you to meet our friends."

"Hello." Five was the first to introduce himself, "I am the Doctor, and this is Adric's friend Nyssa."

"Nice to meet you." Nyssa greeted the man.

"And I'm the Doctor." Ten introduced himself, "and this is my lovely wife, Rose Tyler."

"Hello there." Rose greeted Lee.

"We are so glad you are here, Lee." Adric told the older man.

"T...the place might not have been real," Lee said, "b...but it was r...real to us."

"Exactly." Donna nodded, "So, is there someone you need to get back to here in this world?"

"You're the only w...woman I want to get b...back to." Lee replied.

"So," Ten chimed in, "You and Donna, eh? I take that you are gonna leave with us, Donna?"

"I'm not leaving him here, now am I?" Donna asked indignantly.

"Sounds like a plan!" Ten exclaimed happy to have another member on board, "Donna, you and the TARDIS can set up a room for Lee and we'll be happy to have him along!"

"W...what about Adric?" Lee asked.

"I can't. I'm sorry." Adric apologized glancing at Five and Nyssa, "I have my own TARDIS team to head to. My own family, but I appreciate the offer."

"Awww," Rose grinned, "that is too bad. We could've used someone like you. Your mathematical skills in time of need. My husband told me how great you were despite...never mind."

"We should be on our way." Rose suggested.

"Good idea." Five told the blonde, "but first, my future self and I want to talk alone."

"I do?" Ten replied before looking at his past self's stern look then replying, "Oh, yes. I do. Rose, can you help Donna and the TARDIS set up a room for Lee?"

"I will gladly do that, love." Rose smiled. The couple shared a kiss before Rose left with Donna and Lee to return to their TARDIS.

"Adric, Nyssa," Five told his team, "I'd like you two to return to your TARDIS as well. I will join you momentarily."

Nyssa nodded before she and Adric walked away from the scene, on their way back to their TARDIS.

"How did Donna manage to find Lee?" Nyssa asked.

"I helped." Adric confessed.

"You did?"

"Yeah. I spotted him before he could teleport away and told him that Donna was nearby and then I found Donna and got them two together."

"That was a very sweet thing of you to do."


	20. Epilogue

Five and Ten were face to face with the journal that was in front of them.

"This is Professor Song's diary." Ten stated, holding his sonic screwdriver, "I wonder why she kept it for us."

"Maybe because of a paper that is sticking out."

Five and Ten noticed the white sheet of paper that was sticking out of the diary. Slowly, Ten got the paper out and then he proceeded to read, "Use my sonic screwdriver to save me into the data core, then give my screwdriver to the Fifth Doctor. He will need it in his battles to come I assume. Professor River Song."

_When you run with the Doctor, it feels like it will never end, but however hard you try, you can't run forever. Everybody knows that everybody dies, and nobody knows it like the Doctor. No matter what he looks like but I do think the skies of all the worlds might just turn dark if he ever for one moment accepted._

"Why?" Ten asked, "Why would we give River my...our screwdriver?"

"And what does she mean by..." Five started. He removed a cover on the screwdriver revealing bars that were blinking green lights.

"Oh, oh, oh!" Ten exclaimed.

"I think we just saved her!" Five stated, "She is still dead, but she will remain in the computer along with those who had fallen to the Vashta Nerada."

"To the computer's mainframe!"

Ten and Five both ran all through the library and headed to the library to do what they have to do to place River's consciousness in the library's computer core, where she would remain.

"Stay with us!" Ten shouted as he and Five were running, "You can do it. Stay with us!"

"Sorry, River. Shortcut." Five stated as he used the screwdriver to disable the platform and allow him and Ten to enter into the mainframe in quick time.

_Everybody knows that everybody dies, but not everyday. Not today._

Five plugged his new screwdriver into the hardware of the library's computer system, the data core. The node that wore the child's face smiled.

River found herself wearing white as she looked around her surroundings. Charlotte and Dr. Moon approached her as she was surprised at where she was at.

"It's okay." Charlotte told her, "You're safe. You'll always be safe here. Adric and the Doctors fixed the data core. This is a good place now, but I was worried you might be lonely, so I brought you some friends. Aren't I a clever girl?"

"Aren't we all?"

River turned around and she saw them: Miss Evangelista, Proper Dave, Other Dave and Anita. They were all dressed in white.

"Oh for heaven's sake." River stated, "He just can't do it, can he? That man. That impossible man and his wife. They just can't give in."

River went to hug her friends as they reunited in some sort of afterlife, albeit in a cyberspace sort of way.

_Some days are special. Some days are so, so blessed._

The Tenth Doctor returned with Rose in his TARDIS and closed the doors behind him.

"Are Lee and Donna settled?" the Doctor asked.

"Yes," Rose answered, "they are getting settled. Everything is fine love."

_Some days, nobody dies at all._

Tegan Jovanka was walking down the streets of London. She now had a clean crop hair cut wearing a white top with a white jacket, white shorts and white shoes. She was startled as she heard the TARDIS materialize.

Adric was the first to step out as he wanted it to be confirmed that Tegan was still alive after his trip inside the virtual world that he was in. The Doctor stepped out of the TARDIS next, and then Nyssa.

"You're alive." Adric glanced at Tegan happily, "Oh, Tegan. You're alive."

Adric hurried and hugged Tegan, who was completely confused, "Yeah. I was the last time I looked. Why wouldn't I be? What happened? Doctor, where did you guys go?"

"Far away." the Doctor answered, "it was very far away."

Nyssa joined Adric and Tegan in the group hug while the Doctor looked on.

_Now and then, every once in a very long while, every day in a million days when the wind stands fair and the Doctor comes to call..._

River closed the book to her diary, finishing reading a bedtime story for three children: Charlotte, Ella and Joshua, "Everybody lives."

River looked at each of the sleeping children before leaving the room and turning off the light, "Sweet dreams, everyone."


End file.
